you're watching beyond 100 days, coming to you from northern england to get an election flavour from around the country. like the wider region, bishop auckland voted decisively for brexit in 2016, but it's a labour stronghold now targeted by the conservatives. seats like bishop auckland are a crucial barometer for the rest of the north—east of england, so i've been out with voters to see if tastes are changing. people are much more about the issues and the fundamentals than party politics. historic hearings in washington — soon the public will get to hear from the witnesses in the impeachment inquiry and weigh the evidence for themselves.

also on the programme... israel kills a top islamichhad leader in gaza and braces for retaliatory rocket attacks. after nine years at sea, a message in a bottle finally receives a response. thankfully, it wasn't an 505. hello and welcome. i'm christian fraser in bishop auckland, and michelle fleury is in new york. we are just over a month from the uk general election and it's in places like this — county durham — where the vote could be won and lost. bbc news will be visiting ten areas of the uk where seats will be closely contested. today, we've travelled beyond the bubble to bishop auckland in the north—east of england. it's a marginal labour seat which voted decisively for brexit. well, yesterday the brexit party announced they would not run candidates in seats won by the conservatives in 2017. but they will stand in bishop auckland, making

the seat even more marginal and more unpredictable. last week, we were in leeds on the doorstep with the canvassers. this time, we have steered clear of the campaigns to try and get an unfiltered view, and i have been spoiling myself, michelle. i have been out for three meals — breakfast, lunch and dinner. the 68 cafe sits at a fork high about the durham dales. it's on a trunk road, and in the mornings its owner paula is busy serving breakfast to those heading north, but she also has regulars from nearby bishop auckland, a town which in four weeks will find itself at a political crossroad. i am not voting just for brexit, which is why at the moment i am still really, really torn. there is a menu of options for people here right now, including a brexit party candidate. in bishop auckland, nigel farage thinks he can take crucial votes from labour. he is making the wrong decision. if that is his tactic, he is making the wrong decision,

he should withdraw and let it be that race. he is not stupid, he knows. auckland castle was the seat of the prince bishops. for 750 years they ruled the northern frontier for the kings of england. it has been a labour stronghold in modern times, built on coal, and in every election since 1935 the town has voted the same way. the impregnable red wall is in danger of being breached. since 2005, the labour majority has collapsed to just over 500, and if the tories are to have any chance of securing a majority this time, it is brexit seats like this that they have to take. the newly—reopened castle is bringing welcome trade to the fifteas tea shop, where we meet rebecca and steve, who are decidedly undecided. who will get us out of this the best? this is the north—east, how can this be a target

seats for the tories? i feel as though there's nobody i can trust at the moment, in terms the people available to us, in terms of labour, the conservatives, the other parties, there is nobody i have confidence in to take us forward. it is no longer black and white. 0ld political ties have frayed. 0ur would booking for dinner was at the three horseshoes, a coaching inn in nearby barnard castle that has stood here since the 17th century. inside, farm labourer dean and bar worker kim, first—time voters. if somebody came in and explains what they wanted, it would be an easier choice to make. at the moment, i don't understand what anyone‘s doing. i'm going to stick with boris, see if he can get the job done, hopefully. hopefully. what happens if nigel farage puts in a brexit party candidate? good question. nobody knows what the election will serve up, but a tory win in these parts would be the rarest of things.

so let's take a closer look at the political make—up of bishop auckland. as i mentioned in my report, medieval knights used to fight over this part of northern england and next month the constituency will be hotly contested. the seat was held by labour in the last election and it is bordered by three other labour constituencies, plus one conservative and one independent. the labour incumbent, helen goodman, won byjust 502 votes in 2017. but will the party be able to retain the seat? labour have held the seat since 1935 and 61% in the area voted leave in the eu referendum. it is now a target seat for the conservatives, who came second in the last election. i'm joined now by catherine priestly, the chief reporter at the northern echo.

this is her patch, and it's big, 300 square miles! it is a huge constituency, not just square miles! it is a huge constituency, notjust the town of bishop auckland but four towns, a0 villages and a load of hill farms. so lots of people depend on critical services. brexit dominates, but somebody today was talking about their hospital, and there is a lovely one in bishop auckland but they don't do anything fair. yes, an a&e service was downgraded and there is currently a fight to protect another ward and stroke rehabilitation services there, a wonderful facility rehabilitation services there, a wonderfulfacility and rehabilitation services there, a wonderful facility and a lot of people would like to see better use made of it, not future loss. so they have to go to darlington? growth durham or darlington, yes. when you ta ke durham or darlington, yes. when you take services out of a market town like this that has seen a lack of investment, people really feel it, don't they, and normally they take it out on the incumbent government,

but that's not what we are seeing this time. traditionally, being a labour stronghold for so long, i think a lot of voters would look to labour to represent them with those issues, those services that they would expect labour to represent better and fight for their corner. like you said, brexit is dominating. 61% of people here voted to leave, and yet the incumbent was a remain... why is that? do they think, until we get this sorted, the issues we care about will be put on the back burner? i think that is a fear, and! the back burner? i think that is a fear, and i think a lot of people would look to labour, to the current incumbent, to represent them with thoseissues incumbent, to represent them with those issues and, if she is not representing them on the biggest decision that they've made, you know, voting to leave the eu, then can she really succeed on those other issues? can she really make

the improvements they beat her to? what about the wider region? this is a bellwether town, if you will. are there other towns in the north—east with similar issues? most towns in the north—east have the same issues, but this whole area is trying to build a bright future for itself. it's a wonderful place, wonderful pa rt it's a wonderful place, wonderful part of the country, fantastic places to see, a huge heritage project in this town, but with other towns in this actual constituency that are trying to move forward, build themselves new futures, celebrating their heritage, but moving on, you know. what about the big issue, the idea that the brexit party will stand candidates in constituencies like these, not once the conservatives are in control but once where labour are in control? will they go from labour or the conservatives? i think some labour

voters will feel they need to get brexit done, which is the strong message from the conservative candidate, that she is the one that candidate, that she is the one that can help get that done, and they won't feel able to vote for the conservatives. it just won't feel able to vote for the conservatives. itjust goes against the grainfora conservatives. itjust goes against the grain for a lot of photos here, soi the grain for a lot of photos here, so i think the brexit candidate and lib dems candidates are likely to pick upa lib dems candidates are likely to pick up a few labour voters. thank you for that, catherine priestley from the northern echo. a lot of people today have been talking about that brexit party candidate and which way people might vote. yes, the idea of tactical voting and which way, this is an election about brexit, whether you or remain, so does your vote goes tactical? the other striking thing to me is not just the tactical voting but also the pacts we are seeing with these

parties, the brexit party and the conservatives, and also the lib dems, who have done an agreement with the greens and plaid cymru, so i don't know how efficient or effective that impact will be. i think, looking at tactical voting, it stands to reason it should be easier on the brexit side than the remain side, because there are four 01’ remain side, because there are four or five parties remain side, because there are four orfive parties on remain side, because there are four or five parties on the remain side, because there are four orfive parties on the remain remain side, because there are four or five parties on the remain site and if the brexit party weren't it would be a straight choice. i've looked at two opinion polls today and there is evidence that actually the brexit party only marginally pulls more from labour than the conservatives and, in the same surveys , conservatives and, in the same surveys, if you look at where labour leave photos go, most of them go to the conservatives rather than the brexit party, so what nigel farage is saying when he says, i pull principally from labour, the information doesn't back that up. i

think thejury is information doesn't back that up. i think the jury is out. and the question is, if you do yourself at completely, what is the purpose of the brexit party? the impeachment inquiry into donald trump is about to cross into new territory that could determine the future of his presidency. three administration officials are set to testify this week in public hearings. until now, all testimonies have taken place behind closed doors. the inquiry, led by the democrats, focuses on whether president trump abused his power by threatening to withhold military aid from ukraine unless it investigated former vice—presidentjoe biden and his son, hunter. the first two people due to appear before congress on wednesday are william taylor, the top us diplomat in ukraine, and george kent, deputy assistant secretary for european and eurasian affairs. and on friday, former us ambassador to ukraine marie yovanovitch is scheduled to testify. meanwhile, donald trump has announced plans to "probably" release another transcript of his conversation

with ukraine's president zelenskiy at some point today or before the end of the week. for more on all the latest twists and turns, we're joined from washington by natalie andrews, congressional reporter at the wall stjournal. thank you forjoining us on the programme, natalie. here we are at the start of these public hearings, a significant moment. i guess it's worth taking a bit of time to look at this poll. the trump impeachment enquiry, how do people feel it's being handled? at the moment, democrats in congress getting a8% in the poll from cbs, donald trump getting a3%. those are the stakes. how much that change as we go into the public hearings? this is really what democrats and republicans are preparing to do, make this case and

try and move the needle one way or the other, because most polls have shown there is a split, with democrats supporting it and republicans not, so these hearings are republicans not, so these hearings a re really, republicans not, so these hearings are really, for democrats, about making a case that going into this impeachment enquiry was a good idea and important for america and, for the republicans, they want to make the republicans, they want to make the case that the evidence is not fair, that what the president is being accused of did not happen in the way the democrats say it did. in this new phase, where it is all open, that will be the time to do that. you say the republicans are making their case. how significant is it they are bringing on boardjim jordan to the intelligence committee? very significant, this is an attack dog for the president. donald trump did somebody who was clearly readied to go on tv, attack democrats, make this a fight, and

thatis democrats, make this a fight, and that is whatjim jordan does and what he has been doing through there. also, withjim what he has been doing through there. also, with jim jordan joining there. also, with jim jordan joining the committee, you have his attorney, stephen costa, who was pa rt attorney, stephen costa, who was part of the benghazi select committee questioning, he was also pa rt committee questioning, he was also part of the fast and furious investigation. this is a republican investigator who works for the oversight committee but will be expected to do a lot of the questioning tomorrow. it's worth pointing out to people that this is a moment in history. this has only happened three times before. why do you think the democrats selected these specific two witnesses?m you think the democrats selected these specific two witnesses? it is interesting these two are coming first, but they both can kind of explain a whole overview of the big picture, so phil taylor can talk about how he came to the understanding that $a00 billion of aid was on hold until ukraine

announced they were going to do investigations. —— bill taylor. that was the understanding among diplomats in ukraine, and he will talk about how it came to believe that. the meetings he was in where that. the meetings he was in where that was said, and why that was the understanding, even if the trump administrations says it was not. george kent will talk about the effort to oust the former ambassador. he will talk about how he saw multiple diplomatic channels being started, the official channel and channel with rudy giuliani that was trying to get these investigations to happen. so these two witnesses together will really weigh out the democrats' case, and from friday we will hear from the previous ambassador, and there will be more hearings next week, wejust don't know who will be coming. thank you very much for laying the ground for us. well, with those impeachment

hearings looming, a short time ago president trump was not far from me at the economic club of new york. well, with those impeachment hearings looming, a short time ago he spoke about rolling back regulations, bashed the fed chair and spoke about what it would take to keep a competitive edge. the world is a place of fierce competition. we are competing against other nations forjobs, industry growth and prosperity. factories and businesses will always find a home. it's up to us to decide whether that home will be in a foreign country or right here, in our country. joining us now from new york is our business correspondent, samira hussain. she has been listening to that talk. 0bviously she has been listening to that talk. obviously the president is keen to tout his economic credentials, especially as he goes into the 2020 election, but how much credit can he take? that is exactly right, he is certainly looking at the economy is something he can really use as he

goes into the 2020 presidential elections, and he did certainly want to ta ke elections, and he did certainly want to take a lot of credit for the way the us economy has been going lately, talking about the gains that you've seen on us financial markets, calling them the biggest gains he'd ever seen. he's talked about the unemployment rate and how low it is, and infact unemployment rate and how low it is, and in fact he is really talking a lot about the job gains you've seen. certainly, you can say, look, there have been a lot ofjob gains made during the trump administration, but they will always be debate about how much of that has to do specifically with the administration and how much has to do with policies put in place beforehand. the figures look good for him, the dowjones hitting more records, unemployment at record lows, but we have had rumblings in the last few weeks that, come next year, when we get into 2020 and the

campaign, they will be looking at the numbers in those rust belt states and the numbers could move against him. that's a good point, and it's something i put to a lot of people that attended the speech. he was talking to a pretty warm crowd, investors, people on wall street, business leaders, people really attuned to the economy and generally supporters of mr trump, so i even put that question to some of the people there, why had they come to the speech and whether or not they we re the speech and whether or not they were worried about the economy and, by and large, a lot of the people said they were not worried at all about the economy and were feeling very confident going into the presidential elections that this is a president that could really whether any kind of storm that the economy may bring. and, one thing we often hear about is china and how

big a threat it is to the us, and there is that a dispute at the moment. trump say anything on that that would please the audience? certainly, he mentioned the trade dispute and he said, look, the two sides are very close to a phase one ofa sides are very close to a phase one of a trade deal. that is, of course, welcome news to a lot of business leaders, but we've kind of heard this before several times about the idea that they are getting close to a deal but, ultimately, nobody is really going to do anything until the two sides put something out, and thatis the two sides put something out, and that is what everybody is waiting forand, of that is what everybody is waiting for and, of course, the pressure is on mrtrump now for and, of course, the pressure is on mr trump now we are seeing a lot of businesses expressing concern about this trade war and the damage it is having in the united states, so there is no internal pressure on the president to try and get it

resolved, especially going into next yea r‘s resolved, especially going into next year's presidential election. thank you so much. 0bviously, obviously, the president enjoying the strong stock market figures, taking something of a victory about all of this ahead of those first public hearings. you can watch those first public hearings on bbc news and bbc world news tomorrow. i will be anchoring bbc‘s special live coverage from the white house and capitol hill where first up, us diplomat bill taylor and then george kent from the state department. we'll also have a live page with all the latest updates on the bbc news website from 1300 gmt. and i will be in a warm studio, so i'm looking forward to it! fresh fighting has broken out between israel and militants in the gaza strip. it follows israel's killing of a senior commander of the palestinian militant group, islamicjihad. baha abu al—atta was killed along with his wife when a missile hit their home. at least 150 rockets have been fired

at israel from gaza in response, injuring more than a dozen people. more airstrikes are being carried out on sites in gaza too. the hamas—run health ministry says two palestinians have been killed. israel's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, is warning of prolonged tensions in gaza while the palestinian presidency has called for international pressure to stop israel's attacks. let's speak to our middle east correspondent, barbara plett usher, who's injerusalem. barbara, if i can go back a bit, what can you tell us about this top gaza leader that's been killed, and how this operation, how long it was in the planning? he was the head of palestinian islamicjihad, the command of the northern gaza region, and he has been in the israeli news

and he has been in the israeli news and in the israeli defence force's discussion for quite some time as a person who is quite aggressive and operates independently and has been responsible for many of the recent rocket attacks in israel, and they say he was planning more to come and that he would even challenge the main islamist movement in gaza, hamas, which had taken a more moderate approach, so there was a rocket attack in september in which the israeli prime minister had to run for cover and, since then, there has been discussion in the security cabinet about his fate, and we understand that ten days ago they decided to kill him and they had been waiting for the moment, they said, when they could do it in as assertive a way with as few casualties as possible, so they said today that was the day. and more rockets today from gaza, barbara,

but the israelis are putting the focus very much on islamicjihad and not on hamas. it looks as if they are trying to give them an off ramp. it is interesting, because the past three gaza was have been between israel and hamas, governing body in gaza and main islamist movement, but israelis have been sending quite clear messaging that the clashes with islamicjihad. clear messaging that the clashes with islamic jihad. they've clear messaging that the clashes with islamicjihad. they've also said that they are not planning to resume their policy of assassinating militant leaders. they haven't done this for five years. it's the first time they have carried out a so—called targeted killing in five yea rs so—called targeted killing in five years and the message behind that is they are saying to hamas leaders, we are not coming after you, this is about this particular leader of islamicjihad. hamas has so far joined with islamicjihad in a statement saying that israel has crossed all red lines and it will be

responsible for the consequences, but it's not clear what action it is going to take. some context, this comes as israel is in deadlock after a second election this year did not produce a government, and that escalation of violence likely to have a knock—on effect. as a ten—year—old—boy, max vredenburgh wrote a message, put it in a wine bottle and threw it into the ocean at long beach, in rockport, just north of boston. now, a full nine years later, he has got a reply and it's come all the way from france. now a college student, max posted pictures of the letters on twitter. in his original handwritten letter, he listed some of his favourite things — including apples, outer space and the colour blue — and asked whoever found it to "please write back". and write back they did. a person named "g dubois" said they had found the letter on a beach in france between contis and mimizan, 6,000 kilometres from boston.

dubois says that max must have grown a lot since he sent the letter. max said he was "mind—blown". 0ur producer here in bishop auckland with us today is a keen sailor and she said, yeah, that is because the currents go in a circular motion, so before motorboats they used to sail from europe to america, they used to go to portugal, to the caribbean and then up the eastern seaboard, and then up the eastern seaboard, and then the reverse would have gone past ireland and then to france. this is beyond 100 days from the bbc. coming up for viewers on the bbc news channel and bbc world news — we'll be speaking to the scottish national party about their hopes for regaining the seats they lost to the conservatives in 2017. and hillary clinton calls on the british government to release an intelligence report on russian covert actions in the uk

before the december 12th election. that's still to come. problem with sound.

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cold conditions and it remains u nsettled.

this is beyond 100 days. i'm michelle fleury in new york, christian fraser is in bishop auckland. our top stories — just over a month until the uk goes to the polls, we travel across the country, to hear what matters to communities like here in bishop auckland. it isn'tjust me being ignored or the north east, there 17.a million people who have voted to leave. historic hearings in washington. soon the public will get to hear from the witnesses in the impeachment inquiry and weigh the evidence for themselves. coming up in the next half hour..... the scottish national party lost 21 seats in the last election. it's hoping to get them back. tonight nicola sturgeon is campaigning in longtime labour held edinburgh south.

and hilary clinton tells the bbc she is shocked that the british government has not yet published a report on alleged russian interference in uk politics. i'm dumbfounded that this government won't released a report about russian influence because every person who votes in this country deserves to see that report before your election happens. there's just over four weeks to go until the uk holds a general election. for most of the year i'm out on chilly nights in westminster while mps debate inside. but that's not where the election is fought, so i've left london. today, we've travelled beyond the wesminster bubble to bishop auckland, in the north east of england. i wish it could float around in that

bubble instead of taking trains! it's a marginal labour seat which voted decisively for brexit. the conservatives came second here in the last election two years ago and have targeted the seat this time around. bishop auckland has been represented by a labour mp since 1935, but as clive myrie reports, times could be changing. when coal was a king, so was the local football team. the fans at working miners and families, their political allegiance always to labour. the whistle has gone and bishop auckland have made the hat—trick. bishop auckland have made the hat-trick. but there has been disappointment in the for getting this place exists. now there is anger at this working men's club that labour's handling of brexit as a final kick in the teeth. ask

kevin, an nhs hospital worker switching from labour to tory. it's notjust me being ignored or the north—east, it's the 17.a million people who voted to leave. and you are fed up with that? absolutely fed up. i've had it up to here. ask shannon, silent witness to thousands of conversations. i think a lot of people will end up voting conservative rather than labour, yeah, from what i'm hearing. i normally vote labour. so where are you thinking you might go this time? i'm undecided. right. and askjohn, unhappy but unable to bring himself to vote conservative. what about the brexit party? well, to me, i don't like farage. then again, i don't like corbyn. i don't likejohnson. you are a bit stuck then, aren't you? sounds as if you might reluctantly end up voting labour again. probably, yes. the brexit party candidate standing

here could split the leave vote but, as allegiances shift, a changing of the political weather wouldn't be down to just brexit. years of neglect will play their part, too. auckland castle, with its priceless paintings, has been restored with money from a local multimillionaire. jonathan ruffer is also financing museums, galleries, gardens, shaming past governments of all stripes. the purpose of what we are doing is to help a community find itself. county durham has been under the cosh for a long time, but what we knew was that this was about people, it wasn't about buildings, pictures, anything else, and if you care for people, they respond. bishop auckland are currently mid—table in the northern football league, but how to bring back the glory days, betterjobs, futures for young people, hope? that's what next month's

election is all about. let's look a little further north from where christian is now and focus on the scottish national party's campaign. snp leader nicola sturgeon has been out and about today in the labour—held edinburgh south constituency. it's going to be a tough one for them to win as labour has held this seat since 1987. this evening she's moving on to a town hall event with paisley and renfrewshie south candidate mhairi black who currently holds that seat for the snp. the snp have a lot of ground to make up. in 2015, they secured all but three scottish constituencies, winning 56 out of 59 seats. but it was a different story in 2017 when they lost 21 seats and the conservatives secured 13, the party's best performance in scotland since 1983. so what's the plan for 2019? here's the snp leader nicola sturgeon speaking earlier at a campaign event in paisley

and refrewshire south. the future of our country is quite literally on the line. scotland stands right now at a crossroads. if we don't make our voice heard in this election, if we don't demand the right to choose a better future, afairer the right to choose a better future, a fairerfuture, the right to choose a better future, afairerfuture, are the right to choose a better future, a fairerfuture, are more equal outward —looking, open future for our country, we will have a future determined and decided for us, we will have our future imposed on us by the likes of borisjohnson and by a broken westminster system. nicola sturgeon speaking a little earlier in edinburgh south. does across the way is edinburgh east and the snp candidate there is tommy sheppard and he is in our edinburgh studio for us. good to have you with

us. i think we will show you some live pictures of nicola sturgeon, she is in paisley and renfrewshire north tonight with mary black. there they are, talking to an audience in they are, talking to an audience in the hall. while we look at those pictures, tell us a little about what you are going to want if you will go into coalition with labour? i think will go into coalition with labour? ithink we're will go into coalition with labour? i think we're getting ahead of ourselves here. as a bit difficult for to speculate on what deals might happen afteran for to speculate on what deals might happen after an election after a single vote has been cast. i will play the game if you want to. we have made it clear to the labour party that our, what we would expect in return for supporting any labour programme would be a respect of the decisions of scotland and for the elected scottish parliament. my belief is, when and whether they wish to have another referendum on independence should be a matter for the scottish parliament. boris

johnson seems to think it is a matter for him. labour would have to respect the decisions of the scottish parliament if we were to have any sort ofjoint arrangements with them. a second scottish independence referendum, which also being the labour party scrap trident? that is pa rt of labour party scrap trident? that is part of our programme, we are standing asa part of our programme, we are standing as a party to the abolition of nuclear weapons is of our objective. negotiations between and the labour party or any other parties are something for after the election and we will try to press as much as we can of our programme. a lot of which we have in common with the labour party. the breaking point is the respect for the scottish parliament. what is your priority, if you are talking to voters is it a second referendum or is itjust no brexit? we are saying this election offers a n

brexit? we are saying this election offers an opportunity both to escape brexit and to demand the right to choose a better future. in many ways, as both and i think the whole brexit debate at westminster and the chaos that has descended upon that has turbo—charged here and it is leaving a lot of people are thinking about scottish independence. we are picking up on the doorstop there is a lot of appetite for people with open minds to think afresh about the question of whether or not scotland should become an independent country. we are determined in the future they should get that choice. tommy, even though a lot of assembly candidates have been taken on a boat in your record on the nhs, you're keen to talk about independence and brexit, not so keen to talk about the waiting time targets you have missed in scotland. christian, the accident and emergency service in scotland is the best performing of any country in the uk. without better help record here we are proud of. we spend more per head of population of the health

service than happens elsewhere. just to be clear this is an election we are fighting for westminster which is being fought on uk issues. the health service and education service are a matter for the scottish parliament on the scottish government. that election will be happening in may 2021 and i'm confident the snp will be returned in that election on the basis of the racket it has had in scottish government. against the backdrop of unemployment which is worsening, is that going to complement —— complicate the picture for you? we are fighting every seat to wayne and i think we've got a very strong and confident message which is to lock the conservatives out of power, give people hear the right to choose an alternative future. that is going down well in all parts of scotland including those in 13 conservative seats which we re those in 13 conservative seats which were so those in 13 conservative seats which were so crucial for boris johnson forming a government. tommy

sheppard, it is good of you tojoin us sheppard, it is good of you tojoin us tonight. good to see you up in edinburgh. hillary clinton says she is dumfounded by the fact that the uk will not release a report on russian interference until after the december 12th election. the former democratic presidential has her own experience with that influence on elections and warns it is still ongoing. her comments come as more democrats are flirting with getting into the presidential race despite the late hour. so could secretary clinton be one of them? the bbc‘s mishal hussein sat down with her along with daughter chelsea and that's where they started. it would be very gutsy to have another go at it. it would be very gutsy. that's true. that's something i think about all the time. i think a lot about what's happening in our country, around the world. i try to give the best advice i can to the candidates who are running because my goal is to help retire the current incumbent, i think it's imperative that our country

regain its leadership and its credibility so i'm going to do everything i can to make that happen. will you be endorsing one of them? i don't think so, i will support them, answer their questions in any way that i can but once we have a nominee, to do everything i know to do to win. what do you think about what's happening in this country, the direction that we are taking on brexit? a real hope is that the uk sorts itself out. it's up to the people of this country to decide the direction. but we need a strong uk, we need a uk with smart, sensible, forward—looking leadership so i'm dumbfounded that this government won't release a report about russian influence because every person who votes in this country deserves to see that

report before your election happens. that should be an absolute condition because there is no doubt, we know it in our country, we have seen it in europe, we have seen it here, that russia in particular, is determined to try to shape the politics of western democracies, not to our benefit but to theirs. why do you think they are not releasing it? i don't know the answer to that, i would think a reporter like you and others should be absolutely relentless in trying to get to the bottom of it because look, we know from even this current trump administration's intelligence officials, that the russians are still in our electoral system. we know they are still pumping out propaganda, we know that they would very much like to ensure the re—election of someone who has done their bidding, who just recently said he hopes he can be in red square on may

the 1st with putin to see their may day military parade. so there is no doubt of the role that russia played on a 2016 election and is continuing to play. there is a lot of evidence that russia played in the brexit election, i'm not in your country, i don't have a say about any of that, but the fact that the current government won't release this report by your own government should raise some questions. hillary clinton this robust thing to say. interesting she ruled out quickly she wasn't going to run again. it isn't that baftas questions because there are late entrance into this democratic race. mike bloomberg, the former mayor of new york, has registered for a primary down there in arkansas for the democratic primary. you have the

former massachusetts governor who is looking at a run as well. there are concerns thatjoe biden up there in front of the polls is on the right candidate. i don't know if it so much concern about weakness with joe biden i don't know if it so much concern about weakness withjoe biden and strength of elizabeth warren, you andi strength of elizabeth warren, you and i have talked about this, there is concern in silicon valley and on wall street about her candidacy because she is proposing things like wealth taxes, medicare for all, things that are as popular with the likes of the donor class. if you look at the two names you mentioned, patrick worked for one point and bloomberg billionaire businessman. certainly, the opposite end of the spectrum compared to elizabeth warren. certainly bloomberg one who could fund himself. this is beyond 100 days. still to come — a crucial barometerfor the north—east of england.

we'll be talking to voters in bishop auckland for their views on the forthcoming general election. 0pposition leaders have criticised the government for its "woeful" response to severe floods, which have affected large parts of the midlands and the north of england. borisjohnson said, after a meeting of the government's cobra emergency committee, that efforts were being stepped up, after around a00 homes were flooded and thousands of properties evacuated. danjohnson is in fishlake in south yorkshire and he has more on this story for us. it is right through the house. all the flooring. firstly, this is how life has been since friday. james is cut off and barely coping. you are living like this for five days? yes,

trying to keep warm, sleep. everything we have got is wet, it is destroyed. no heating. no light? we have one light eventually in the bedroom. plough on down these flooded lanes and you only find more misery. some are onlyjust returning to see what they last and salvage what is left. they are asking what next? today, flooding overflowed into the election campaign. we can't leave people living in this awful sense of fear. it is wrong that it is down to the local communities importance although work is, this is a national emergency. winter emergency. winter after winter committees homes and communities that get destroyed as a result of action and long—term action not been put in place. this afternoon, ministers and officials met in downing street to discuss the floods. we simply have to prepare

for more floods this winter, a huge amount of energy and effort into going into that. here, pumps are starting to move the water and emergency teams are getting through. but some are still feeling forgotten. let's return to bishop auckland now in the north—east of england a seat where labour holds a majority of just 502 votes. people voted decisively for brexit in 2016 and the constituency has historically been a labour stronghold in general elections. the area's been labour because it was traditionally a mining town. however, it has seriously suffered from industrial decline. currently, at 5.8%, the unemployment benefit rate in bishop auckland is higher than the national average of a%. but money is coming in. for instance, the town's 900—year—old castle reopened earlier this month

after a three—year conservation project in a drive to increase tourism to the area. well, i'm joined now by nigel bryson, a volunteer at four clocks, and chair of the bishop auckland town team, david faint, director at cello technologies and faye miller, a small business owner. this is positive behind us, but when you go down the high street, the top end of the main drag, a lot of the shops are boarded up are closed. what has happened in recent years?” think business rates have got to people. you've got to pay that on top of your shop around and everything else that comes with it. there is internet floods felt to sustained rent i imagine. is that

because of incomes? people shop out of town now? they shop online? retail parks have opened up around the town and people shop online.“ you enrol a town like this and your bank disappears it has a real serious effect because you are slightly cut off here. you have one train that comes in every hour, two trunk roads but sometimes they close. if you lose those services it can be quite difficult for people to be able to bank and get into the post office. in bishop auckland it is fortunate in that we've got eight of the main banks are still having their branches here and one of the interesting finds of walking down the street is to see the shops closed. but we've got all the banks here. that is the reflection that the investment that is coming into bishop auckland and bishop auckland asa mini bishop auckland and bishop auckland as a mini regional centre means the banks and other people are still

holding their services here. we can't guarantee they won't close in future. but it is a lifeline. looking back to brexit that time to talk to you, you are running a television company. are you the last television company. are you the last television company? yes. brexit, we have to talk about brexit. do you export? brexit has affected us. if you make a big decision about buying atvora you make a big decision about buying a tv or a car, it stops you. the plan for next it could be led by a tv but you don't because of the uncertainty. i've asked questions wherever i've been this week and the feedback i've had from people in this town is they want it done. whichever way they voted they want it done. absolutely. whether it is a

good deal, bad deal, please get it done. the uncertainty, has been lasting for three years now. as we have got to the end date of when the vote was coming up, it has been total chaos. it hasn't helped this at all, the uncertainty has been really tough and other businesses. everybody i talk to in business are saying the same. brexit is a conservative policy, this is the incumbent government that has been in since 2010 and yet here we have a town, and somebody talk to me about certain about it, this is a town that could vote for the party of margaret thatcher. how will that happen? evena margaret thatcher. how will that happen? even a mixture of things going on. part of the difficulty is when you are looking as brexit, we don't really know what the situation is going to be for us. you've also

got an dissolution people with labour in the town. it has been labour in the town. it has been labour since 1935 so they will have to ta ke labour since 1935 so they will have to take some responsibility for it. the difficulty is people are finding in the town, we resources have been taken in the town, we resources have been ta ken away from in the town, we resources have been taken away from county durham which isa taken away from county durham which is a labour—controlled authority by the reduction of money that has come from the conservative party, they have ta ken a from the conservative party, they have taken a hit because they are having to reduce services because of the reduction. they've lost £200 million since 2010. we have heard from the reporter at the echo and she said the labour mp, she is visible, she has been here for 15 yea rs, if visible, she has been here for 15 years, if you are concerned about local issues you need a local mp, don't you? yes. i've not seen much of helen goodman. you've not seen much of her? no. we had a letter

through the door a few days ago but otherwise people are upset and i think they think because they voted labourfor so long, think they think because they voted labour for so long, they need to change the lines. i do think that is the right thing to do for top this is one of the towers that will get hundred and 50 million. whether to make a difference? for us to expand and employ more people, we need money put towards apprenticeships. we've got a dying breed and tv engineers that are difficult to find. a long shot would be fore as if the government turned around and started imposing duties or tariffs on televisions that are dumped into the uk markets from turkey in particular, which affects us. if we can graba particular, which affects us. if we can grab a bit of that business we would expand here and take on more

jobs. we are always fighting against product that is coming in from turkey which makes it difficult. 0k, it's very good of you to come and talk to us. can i give you one fact. tv licensing, there are 6500 households in the uk but still watch black—and—white televisions. did you know that? there is business out there! opportunities! thank you very much indeed. we are going to go inside shortly and we are going to warm up. i am looking enviously at your one layer, i've got five on! you will be in the warm tomorrow, i will be outside in the cold for what is promising to be a momentous moment here in the usa, those public hearings and the impeachment enquiry being led by the democrats. this is when we will hear from two witnesses. we will hear more on

friday. you can catch more on bbc world. good evening. for wednesday, there is something drier, a breakfrom the wet weather but it will be short—lived. we have still got flooding issues around the country. there are still severe flood warnings in force for the don valley. as we head into wednesday, with gutted transient a ridge of high pressure which will help to settle things down. 0ne high pressure which will help to settle things down. one area of low pressure clearing up towards the north sea bought there is another lurking in the winds ready to move in from the atlantic. this evening, still some outbreaks of showery rainbow gradually through the day they will ease and fate. still if you continuing to feed into scotland which could be wintry, still if few showers for wales but later winds

are showers for wales but later winds a re clear showers for wales but later winds are clear skies, the recipe for a widespread frost. particularly for the northern part of the uk, the further south you can temperatures won't drop away so far. many will wa ke won't drop away so far. many will wake up to scenes like this on wednesday. frosty with mist and fog in places but it shouldn't be too expensive. wednesday for many will bea expensive. wednesday for many will be a fine and dry day with lengthy spells of crisp autumn sunshine from the word go. still a few showers feeding into scotland, north—east scotla nd feeding into scotland, north—east scotland may struggle to get above freezing on wednesday. it will be a cold day but there next system shows its hand down towards the south—west of england at the south—west of england and into wales introducing rain. this rain is on the move as we have through wednesday evening and it looks as though it could be a bit it looks as though it could be a bit it pivots, work its way north and west words. heavy and persistent rain moving into potentially areas that has already seen a lot of rainfall. places like south

yorkshire and derbyshire. this rain is just yorkshire and derbyshire. this rain isjust going to yorkshire and derbyshire. this rain is just going to hang around through thursday. away from that, they will be drier, brighter spells to be had but it will still feel cold on thursday. 0n but it will still feel cold on thursday. on thursday evening, i area of rain clears down towards the south. it will leave showery outbreaks through friday, still another cold day and fairly windy. that is how we head into the weekend, we keep the cold conditions and it remains unsettled.

this is bbc news. the headlines. the government announces extra support for people, homes and businesses caught up in the flooding in the north of england — after opposition leaders accused them of not doing enough to help victims. the prime minister said more flooding could be likely. we simply have to prepare for more floods this winter. a huge amount of energy and effort is going into that. the conservative government's response to the floods has been woeful. just imagine if this had happened in surrey instead of yorkshire and the east midlands. i think there would have been a very, very different story. it is wrong that it seems to be just down to the local communities. important though this work is, this is clearly a national emergency and the government should be declaring it as such.